Not P but Moby-Dick (29)

[Ian Livingston]

Well, yes and then some. I think it is an appeal to the courage employed in
the will to live, to the spirit, if you will, to transcend the paralysis of
fear. Rather than exclamation, I would call it an exhortation, but
exclamation serves the purpose.
If you have ever faced a life-threatening moment, you know what I mean: the
"heart alive" will do what it must to stay alive. Conscious self-awareness
suspends, body and brain act in unison in what psychologists call the
fight, flight, or freeze response. In this case, Stubb appeals to the fight
response to traumatic stimulus.

On Sun, Oct 22, 2023 at 4:32 AM Mark Kohut <mark.kohut at gmail.com> wrote:

> I think heart here is a synecdoche for person.
>
> On Sun, Oct 22, 2023 at 4:23 AM Mike Jing <gravitys.rainbow.cn at gmail.com>
> wrote:
>
> > From Chapter 48:
> >
> > “Pull, pull, my fine hearts-alive; pull, my children; pull, my little
> > ones,” drawlingly and soothingly sighed Stubb to his crew, some of whom
> > still showed signs of uneasiness. “Why don’t you break your backbones, my
> > boys? What is it you stare at? Those chaps in yonder boat? Tut! They are
> > only five more hands come to help us—never mind from where—the more the
> > merrier. Pull, then, do pull; never mind the brimstone—devils are good
> > fellows enough. So, so; there you are now; that’s the stroke for a
> thousand
> > pounds; that’s the stroke to sweep the stakes! Hurrah for the gold cup of
> > sperm oil, my heroes! Three cheers, men—all hearts alive! Easy, easy;
> don’t
> > be in a hurry—don’t be in a hurry.
> >
> > According to the OED, "heart alive" is an exclamation. What is the
> meaning
> > of "my fine hearts-alive" and "all hearts alive" here?
> > --
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> >
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>